Re: Branding and marketing

From: Nick Wreden <netbrand_at_bellsouth.net>
Date: Tue 09 Jan 2001 16:24:47 -0500

GERI STUNZ KONSTANTIN <geri_at_virtualadv.com> WROTE:
> I think this Digest needs to go back to basics. The
> reason why so many dot coms are failing (including
> priceline.com) is their failure to understand basic
> marketing. This talk about "branding" is apparently the
> latest misconception.
>
> Firstly, you do branding for products, not services.

Geri has the right diagnosis of the problem, but I
disagree with his suggestion for a solution.

First, some of the problems associated with branding
can be linked to a lack of definition. That makes it
hard to set goals or measure results. The definitions
range from the clinical ("a name, term, sign, symbol
or design, or a combination of these that identifies
the goods or services of one seller or group of
sellers and differentiates them from those of
competitors") to the indefinite ("the sum of all the
images and associations customers have concerning a
company") to the just-plain-silly ("great brands are
born from people who are having fun and who have a
sense of humor. Their personal excitement is
reflected in the meaning of the brand."). These
definitions are all from current branding books.

"Brand building and branding are not one and the same
either. Brand building encompasses a variety of
advertising and marketing techniques. Branding
encompasses specific and usually visual or audible
techniques to in essence create a Pavlovian response to
certain stimulae to impress a Brand name product in
someone's mind. You think Tide you think clean. Tide
owns "clean". No one else can touch it."

So how do you define a brand? The key mistake
companies make is that they define it from their
perspective. This leads to the trap that so many fall
into of confusing branding with awareness. As Geri and
many others on this list have pointed out, you can
have a product that many know about and still not have
a brand. If brands could be defined by companies, the
difficult task of branding would be much easier -- all
it would take is more advertising, more PR, etc. Any
agency that comes in and promotes themselves as
branding experts by their ability to raise awareness
ought to be fired on the spot.

Branding is difficult because companies do not define
brands -- consumers/customers do. This has two
implications. First, products as well as services can
be branded. I would argue that McKinsey & Co. or
Goldman Sachs or even the great babysitter in my
neighborhood who's booked weeks in advance has a
brand. Second, branding can fail even with vast
marketing expenditures, or succeed with almost none.
Who can argue that the Turkish guy whose ebullient Web
page got published worldwide and is now on a world
tour doesn't have a brand?

If you accept the argument that consumers/customers --
not companies -- define what a brand is, then how do
you brand? Let's first define a brand as a shared
emotional commitment to an offering (either product or
service) based on trust and loyalty. If you accept
that definition, then branding goals are to create the
shared emotional commitment (through community and
other tactics) and build trust and loyalty. Trust and
loyalty are built through operational excellence --
defined as responsiveness and consistency in
everything from the Web site to fulfillment to even how
the receptionists greets visitors. Building
operational excellence means getting down into the
trenches to deal with warehouse service levels, call
handling, transportation management, etc. It's not as
exciting as working on a new campaign, but it's much
more critical to building a brand. Many dot-coms (and
others) have failed because they ignored this step.

Back to branding - brand loyalty is not branding
either. Brand loyalty is built up through favorable
price points, superior products and tangible consumer
benefits. This can be accomplished more quickly than
branding.

Again, a disagreement. Loyalty is the soul of a brand.
It's what makes a brand so valuable. Consumers are
willing to pay more for a brand. It increases
retention. And it drives favorable reputation and
word-of-mouth.

Branding is slighly elusive in it's definition, but is
specific in it's goals. It is not an easy thing to do.
To do it well takes years of experience and a lot of
planning.

I want to say this ever-so-gently and in a helpful
spirit, because it's a pet peeve of mine. There is a
big difference between "it's" and "its." Making a
case, like branding, requires solid execution of the
fundamentals.





Received on Tue Jan 09 2001 - 15:24:47 CST